Food Additives

When my son was two years old and I was pregnant with my daughter he was throwing massive tantrums. I'm talking 45 minute trantrums of full on screaming, kicking, crying and throwing. Often 3 times a day. Every day. Anywhere. Without warning. People in shopping centres would stare at me, shake their heads and mutter under their breath. Others would come up to me and ask me why my child was screaming and what was I going to do about it. One man accused me of traumatising my child. Another suggested that I smack him (read: beat the crap out of him) until he shut up.

I remember when my daughter was six months old (yes, the trantrum throwing went on for about a year) he was throwing a huge hissy fit in the car. He was climbing out of his seatbelt harness and wouldn't stay in his seat. I couldn't drive without him being in the seat and the screaming was driving me insane. I ended up pulling up on the side of the road and sitting on the footpath beside the car until he stopped.

I was tired, I was emotional, I was frustrated, I didn't know what to do, I couldn't control him no matter what I did and I couldn't find anyone to help me. He was out of control and I was right behind him. At the end of my tether one day I decided to google tantrums and see if I could get some help from other parents in the same situation.

I happened upon a forum discussion about food additives and behaviour. The discussion centred around preservative found in bread as being a particular culprit. Having nothing to lose I decided to cut bread with preservative added out of our diet. Starting there and then. The local shopping centre had a Brumby's bakery so I bundled the baby and toddler into the car and went down to buy a couple of loaves.

A mere 3 days later ALL the tantrums had stopped. Like magic. Peace had descended upon us. He was transformed into a happy, smiling, cheerful little boy and our lives headed down a new path. I was enjoying my new boy. He was delightful. He wanted to help. He was interested in what was happening around him. He was calm. He started exploring more. He slept better. He was happy and I was happy for him.

At the time I was running a playgroup and was Townsville Area Coordinator for Playgroup Qld. A few months after I'd discovered how additives could affect behaviour Playgroup Qld hosted statewide presentations by Sue Dengate. I attended her Townsville presentation and the information she presented changed my view of food forever. If you are interested in how additives affect our bodies I recommend you visit her website or get your hands on one of her books. It will change the way you think about food. It made me angry to find out what is being put into our foods without our knowledge. I'm still angry that people refuse to believe that unnatural additives adversely affect our bodies.

So the next time you see a distraught, emotional, fed up, angry parent trying to deal with a screaming toddler be gentle with them. Smile, offer to help and mention food additives. Even if you get pushed away the seed may be sown and could help them out one day. You just never know. I wish someone had said it to me. :)